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Details

Classification:

Moving Image

Materials:

16mm film, Sound, Digital video, 16mm film

Dimensions:

20 minutes

Accession Number:

K6483

Credit:

Presented by the Contemporary Art Society Collections Fund, 2014

Ownership history:

Purchased from Kare MacGarry, London by the Contemporary Art Society from its Collections Fund (2012 -2015), 2014; presented jointly to Brighton Museum & Art Gallery, Royal Pavilion and Museums, Brighton and Hove and Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, 2014
With an affection for utopian novels like Sir Francis Bacon’s The New Atlantis and Mary Shelley’s The Last Man, Rivers’s work blends aspects of fiction and reality in a subversive and poetic manner. His work focuses on lone individuals and small insular communities on the fringes of society, from hermetic existences found deep in the Scottish countryside to post-apocalyptic island ecosystems.

The passing of time is a preoccupation of many of Rivers’s subjects. Conceived as a companion piece to In Origin of The Species subtitled: ‘An exploration into the nature of the world via the extraordinary S, who lives in the wilderness’ , Ah, Liberty! is a mesmerising study of a family’s place in the wilderness. Working and playing on a farm in the Scottish highlands throughout the seasons, it captures an untamed sense of freedom, undercut with a sense of foreboding.

All rights reserved. Any further use will need to be cleared with the rights holder. Permission granted to reproduce for personal and educational use only. Commercial copying, hiring, lending is prohibited. The collection that owns this artwork may have more information on their own website about permitted uses and image licensing options.

For further information, please consult our section of our copyright policy.

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